G’day Alan,
I couldn’t agree more on the name game. I am quite sure many of the keris terms that we use nowadays are quite recent. Some may even have just been created and then used by the public that mostly are unaware on the origin of the term. Problem is most people almost never question where these terms originated.
Regarding saribulan. Another name for this sampir is “Sampir Dua Haribulan ” – (shape of the moon on the second day of the lunar month). Probably the name Sari bulan is a corruption of Hari Bulan.
On the other hand, when looking at old manuscript, it seems that the word seri (meaning gleaming light –something of that effect) may also a misspelt/mispronounced as sari. For example Balairong Seri spelled as Balairong Sari. This may occur due to local dialects. For example the Minangkabau people pronounced sebelas (eleven) as sabelas and berseri (gleaming) as barsari. Therefore, I think it is also possible that sampir Sari Bulan may actually mean “Seri Bulan” – gleaming light of the moon.
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